And today I'm here to talk to you about one of my favorite topics and a website that I spend way too much time on!

Before I tell you what it is, pause this video and go subscribe to our channel.

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So it's probably no surprise that the website I'm talking about is: Netflix!

If you're not familiar with it, Netflix is a paid video streaming service.

Today I'll be talking about Netflix specifically but if you are an HBO Go, Hulu or Amazon Prime subscriber for example, lots of what I say might be useful to you as well.

Here's a tip: if you already have a Netflix account, create a separate profile just for English practice.

It's easy to do and it's free. There are several advantages to doing this.

First, you won't have to worry about constantly switching the language of your audio and subtitles.

Second, you'll get better suggestions based on English content you've already watched. And third, once you create a new profile you'll have the option to pick the language of your interface and menus.

Pick English of course!

Little changes like this really add to your immersion experience and can make a big difference.

Now that your profile is set up, pick a TV series or a movie to watch.

For beginner and low-intermediate learners: I recommend starting with a short TV show.

It takes a lot of effort to concentrate on listening comprehension.

So by choosing a shorter show, you're less likely to get exhausted or overwhelmed by the process.

Look for a series that has 20- to 30-minute episodes

Movies are more challenging and are usually best for high-intermediate to advanced learners, since you'll have less time to get used to the characters' accents and understand specialized vocabulary that is key to the plot.

Also, make sure the English show or movie was originally produced in English and not dubbed from another language.

Netflix dubbing and subtitles are usually pretty good but it's always best to choose original content for language learning.

Speaking of subtitles, make sure English subtitles are an option for the series you choose.

If you don't like the suggestions on your home page, you can always search for a specific show, theme or category.

I recommend choosing a realistic show or sitcom because these are usually easier to understand.

The characters use common vocabulary that you might already know or at least that will be useful to you in your everyday life.

Some American sitcoms that I personally recommend include: Friends, That 70s Show, Grace and Frankie, New Girl, The Good Place and The Office.

However if you're more interested in sci-fi or fantasy for example, watch that!

It's important to actually enjoy yourself and not torture yourself just for the sake of learning English.

If an activity isn't fun, you aren't very likely to stick with it.

Note that every country has different Netflix content, and it's always changing. So check back often to see what's new.

Since your profile is now in English, all of the show descriptions will also appear in English.

Before you even start watching a show and working on your listening skills, you'll get to practice your reading comprehension.

Once you've chosen a show it's time to get to work. If you can call: watching TV "work."

Of course the situation is different if you're a beginner or an advanced learner.

For high-intermediate and advanced learners, I recommend watching TV shows and movies with no subtitles at all.

It's okay if you only understand 70-80% of what you hear.

This exercise will improve your ability to use context clues to fill in the blanks when you don't understand something.

But if it's still too difficult, you can turn on the subtitles in English for the first episode, if you're watching a TV show.

The situation is pretty different if you're a beginner or low-intermediate student, since not using any subtitles at all will likely be much too difficult for you.

As Luca explained in another video that we published on our channel (you can find the link in the video description below) it's okay to start with subtitles in your native language.

But as soon as you can, you should switch those subtitles into English and eventually turn them off completely.

Today I want to suggest some activities that

are really adapted to beginner students: - watch the first few minutes of an

episode without any subtitles and then assess your comprehension

- while you're watching you can note some important words, and then if you can't guess what

they mean from the context, you can go ahead and look them up at the end

- if you are totally lost and you understood less than half of what you watched,

I recommend reading a summary (in English) of the episode or watching it again with the English subtitles

- Then memorize some of that key vocabulary from the episode

and watch it again without subtitles

- If you understood more than half but less than 100

Then memorize some of that vocabulary

and watch it again to see how much more you understood.

- If you understood everything: great job!

But you're probably not challenging yourself enough.

Try a movie next time!

If you're a native English speaker

or simply not interested in learning English, you'll be happy to

know that you can use Netflix to learn other languages, too. Although when it was

first launched, Netflix was producing most of its content in English, they're

really stepping up their game with foreign language content these days.

A few Netflix originals that I highly recommend if you're learning other

languages include: Dark (for German), La Casa de Papel (for Spanish) and Plan Coeur (for French).

That's it for today! But one last thing before I go: a little homework

assignment. I bet you've never gotten homework quite like this before.

Your assignment is to go watch Netflix! Of course, as I said these tips might even

work for Amazon Prime or HBO Go.

I'm less familiar with these platforms but I'm

sure they have a ton of great English language content for language learners.

Browse through your favorite category of English TV shows and go for it.

Learn English and have fun! If you want to learn more about our method that

can help you enjoy learning a language by watching foreign language content,

check out the video description below. See you soon!

Before leaving you, I'd like to invite you to join our language community.

Tons of subscribers are already taking advantage

of the great tips and hacks that our team of language

lovers shares. So join us and start improving your language skills today.

Just subscribe and turn on your notifications. Happy learning!